Let the show begin!

 A fond farewell to the old, as a bold 2022 unfolds.

Power naps are super productive! It’s after one such snooze that I woke up to the impulsive, yet intense resolve to publish my first book. I don’t think I ever foresaw myself accomplishing the mission until that moment, when the thought almost exploded in my head like a supernova. 

If 2020 was about surviving the colossal disorientation, 2021 was all about re-building the bridges & re-connecting with the self (that seemingly had been paused), as well as, with others. It was also about giving in to the now unpaused otherworldly biddings of the brain – in my case, resulting in Earth Sky – my first book of poems. The burning desire within, finally transformed into reality. 

2021 made us work hard, & hope harder! The Cabin fever state-of-mind apprehensively gave way to a sneak peek of the mountains, the rivers and the back waters too - perks of working remote from God’s own country for a whole year! The post-pandemic (if there’s such a thing) travel-list is also slowly building up, as the world incrementally opens up its arms in longing embrace. Along with it perhaps the seeds of a new book too, that I hope to bring to bloom, under the fondly-awaited Deccan thundershowers in the coming months.

2021 had a few jolting revelations too -  which though did blow over like a summer’s day breeze, left me pondering over the true meaning and purpose of life. Forever thankful to the perspectives gifted by the plenteous books I devoured and still wolf down, almost as if my life depends on it. I could count on them to usher in beatific visions, even in the midst of spiritual and corporal turmoil! Endless gratitude to a handful of people closest to my heart for their title recommendations! 

2020 had brought with it a deluge of voices and visions from the past, as the world connected like never before, in a frenzy. 2021 served to refine the list further retaining those few voices that persisted. The past 20 months have probably been the longest 20 months of my life. Each day was a learning unto itself. A reminder to never take for granted what I have today – be it an ounce of sanity or even a breath of life-giving air.

As hard as it may have been, at the end of it all, I am grateful. For my family, my friends, my equally amazing colleagues, my opportunity to continue working in one of the best organizations in the world, my doctors, my publishers, my readers, my critics and not to forget my feline friends – in whose deepest green eyes my universe melts into nothingness!

This brings me back to a recurring question, put across to me by some of my readers. ‘Why Earth Sky when the Sky so mightily towers above the Earth? You seem to have upended the cosmic tapestry!? ’

By all means, I’m happy they’re intrigued. Well, as long as we are bound by gravity to this speck of a sphere in the cosmos, I believe we will not be able to see a sky that’s anywhere else, but towering above us. But what limits the mind? Why not break free? Unsee.

Perhaps I may underscore this with a few lines from my ode to the universe, ‘Brahm’ itself…

“The nomad and the desert
Become one within you,
As you journey through infinite lights and shadows
In the vain quest for a beginning and an end.”

I can’t wait for the vagaries of 2022 to unfold! 
Let’s grab the best seats and wait for the show to begin!
Fingers crossed.

How about you?

Cheers!

Amogha